BALTIMORE (WJZ)—Big plans for the port. The mayor just returned from visiting the Panama Canal with Vice President Joe Biden. Improvements being made there will have huge impacts on Baltimore.

Linh Bui sat down with the mayor one-on-one.

The mayor just returned from her two-day trip to Panama. She says the new canal is incredible and could mean big business and more jobs for Baltimore.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake joined the vice president and others to see the Panama Canal expansion.

Its completion in 2015 could be a big boost for the United States.

“We have the possibility of expanding our economy by hundreds of billions of dollars over the near term,” Biden said.

Back from her trip, the mayor sat down with WJZ and says Baltimore can benefit if it’s ready.

“Baltimore is ahead of the game. And I want to make sure that we stay there, so we’re able to take advantage of the expansion of the canal and expand job opportunities for people right here at home,” Rawlings-Blake said.

At the Port of Baltimore, deep dredging, big cranes and widened docks are in place.

But the mayor says an intermodal facility or CSX transfer station is critical in getting more cargo out to the rest of the country.

There are plans to build the transfer station in Southwest Baltimore. However, there’s been opposition from some council members and people in the community.

In Morrell Park, signs in front of homes and businesses read, “Don’t Get Railroaded, Stop CSX.”